Where in the USA is car culture the strongest?

"MegaSuper" (megasuper)
05/08/2015 at 18:27 • Filed to: None

It seems that in a lot of magazines, movies, TV shows, etc, California is often cited as being a big deal; new cars getting their first drives in Malibu, the Los Angeles canyons, birthplace of hot rods, low riders (I think?), American Graffitti, The Fast and the Furious-type tuner culture (although TBH I’m not sure if that’s because Hollywood is there, or because the tuner culture pre-dated the films there), “California edition” cars, etc…

On the other hand though, I always found it ironic that “tuner culture” seems to be centered upon California, which also happens to have the strictest emissions laws in the US! (Right?) So wouldn’t that make tuning/aftermarket stuff more difficult? (Or is someone going to crack a joke that “tuned” cars just LOOK that way and don’t necessarily have to PERFORM that way, haha)

So because of that, it’s more difficult to import a car from another country (so less wacky stuff on the roads and at car meets). Gas is expensive. I’m not sure this necessarily detracts from car culture on its own, but compared to other parts of the US, there’s probably more acceptance of bicycles/public transport/Priuses. Not saying those are terrible, but it might impact how people perceive cars and their enthusiasts I suppose.

And of course there are other tuning companies like Hennessey and Lingenfelter, but again, IIRC, they can’t sell their most-powerful tuning packages in California because they don’t meet their emissions requirements (I realize this probably only affects a small handful of car enthusiasts, but still.)

California has Pebble Beach, Dinan, and Tesla, which are all pretty well known. On the other hand, correct me if I’m wrong, but wasn’t Irvine’s Cars and Coffee the “original” C&C? And now it’s been shut down?

So is California the ultimate “we worship at the altar of the automobile” place? The place where someone is most likely to do a double-take if they see a Citroën SM in a grocery store parking lot?

I’m wondering because it seems to be presented that way in American media, but I don’t see that many posts on here relating to things happening in California (maybe I’ve just been looking at the wrong times!)

And of course, some people will say “Well it doesn’t matter if people in San Francisco/Los Angeles like cars, good luck dealing with the traffic/parking/gridlock/whatever there!” It seems to me that a lot of the posts on here, and even the main Jalop site, feature the Virginia/Carolinas/Kentucky/Tennessee area a lot, so I’m curious what you all think is the part of the US that probably has the most Oppo-type people (per capita, I guess!)

EDIT: Forgot to ask: Where does Michigan fit into all of this? What I’ve read on here is very positive, so do people consider it the “homeland” of US auto culture? Or, with the advent of things like Tesla, is it more of a “Eh Detroit has seen better days/shadow of its former self” sort of sentiment?

DISCUSSION (23)

jkm7680 > MegaSuper
05/08/2015 at 18:30

Cali sucks because of emissions. Virginia sucks because of extreme speeding penalties.

505Turbeaux > MegaSuper
05/08/2015 at 18:31

to me? my driveway. I don’t have to deal with ricers, generic muscle car/vette/mustang guys or anybody I don’t want to let in my own version of car culture. And it is in the USA too!

beyond that, I have seen a strong showing in either Denver, or Atlanta

GhostZ > MegaSuper
05/08/2015 at 18:36

Online.

ly2v8-Brian > MegaSuper
05/08/2015 at 18:36

Everywhere in this country.

MasterMario - Keeper of the V8s > MegaSuper
05/08/2015 at 18:38

I think you’d have trouble finding a place anywhere in the US that lacked car culture...California just gets the most press because of Hollywood (fast and furious), number of people, and amount of money (pebble beach). And tesla there because of the tech industry, not because of car culture

Funktheduck > 505Turbeaux
05/08/2015 at 18:38

Atl representin

ly2v8-Brian > 505Turbeaux
05/08/2015 at 18:39

Sound reasoning as any. ‘Car culture’ is what ever you want it to be.

Flat Six > MegaSuper
05/08/2015 at 18:42

Southern California has the biggest and most diverse car culture for several factors:

Cars last forever and hold value (no rust or sun damage) even if not garaged

Good weather for summer tires and top down convertibles

Diverse peoples (moviestars, surfers, lowriders, rich people)

Great roads and plenty of parking compared to places like NYC or SF

Lots of places to show off or hang out (beach, strips, shows)

Not so great public transportation

yamahog > MegaSuper
05/08/2015 at 18:42

Fuck LA. Detroit vs the world.

E92M3 > MegaSuper
05/08/2015 at 18:48

I’d say LA wins. Atlanta, and Detroit have a good following too. When I lived in Colorado it seemed like Subaru nation. Most people I met were afraid to own nice cars in fear of being labeled a douche.

Brian, The Life of > Flat Six
05/08/2015 at 18:59

Yep, I think you nailed it. Add to it our roots in the “wild western” culture. LA is especially the epicenter of CA car culture because of its historical contribution (birthplace of the hot rod, lowrider and custom shops). Also Shelby American. Tangentially, post-war motorcycle clubs got their start here, too.

MegaSuper > Brian, The Life of
05/08/2015 at 19:09

Oh, so the Southern California car culture is quite different than Northern California then? What’s different about Northern California that makes them not quite on the same level as Southern here? It’s not a state-wide thing?

MegaSuper > MasterMario - Keeper of the V8s
05/08/2015 at 19:09

So Tesla is viewed more as being a peer of Apple/Google than Ford/Chevy in California? Is it liked more by people who are fans of cars, or people who are fans of computers/phones? That’s interesting to hear.

Brian, The Life of > MegaSuper
05/08/2015 at 19:32

Don’t get me wrong; I’m not saying that there isn’t a strong car culture in NoCal (or any other state for that matter). I just think it has something to do with the historical impact SoCal has had on car culture in general and vice-versa. Hot rod culture spread quickly throughout CA in the postwar period through the 1960s. American Graffiti was really a biopic of George Lucas’ youth in the Central Valley, after all - place that is culturally distinct from both SoCal and what we traditionally think of as NoCal.

Ferrero1911 > MegaSuper
05/08/2015 at 19:34

I could write a book about California car culture past and future as it relates to draconian emissions etcetera, but I don’t really have time right now. So I’ll just address this one point that jumped out at me:

I don’t think more people will necessarily notice a Citroen at the grocery store, but you more likely to see one there than in other places. I live in Los Angeles and there are cool cars just driving around all the time. There’s so much car culture here that you almost get a little jaded (like there are very few cars I would bother taking a picture of if spotted in traffic kind of jaded).

I don’t think there are really more car enthusiasts here, I just think they are able to use their cars more because the weather is so nice. Also money, there are lots of rich people here so there are lots of expensive cars. There are also lots and lots of Priuses, but I would say less acceptance of public transportation than other places.

Ferrero1911 > Flat Six
05/08/2015 at 19:36

Great points. My DD has only ever had summer tires. By great roads I’m assuming you mean the canyons and stuff like that, because the road conditions are downright terrible.

Racescort666 > MegaSuper
05/08/2015 at 19:38

I have a sneaking suspicion that you’ve never been to Woodward Dream Cruise. Some of the comments have hinted at the fact that car culture is widespread throughout the U.S. but Detroit is where it’s at. The city of Detroit isn’t in as great of shape as it used to be but that’s because most people that lived there moved out to the suburbs. When I was living there, it seemed like everyone had a project of some kind and knew someone who had a hookup for something or other.

Want a car acid dipped? Sure, there’s a guy in Romulus who does that. Engine hot tanked? We’re doing a batch next week, $10 work for you? Turbocharged weed whacker? I know a guy. I even worked with a guy who used to tractor pull vintage tractors. I didn't even know such a sport existed.

PetarVN, GLI Guy, now with stupid power > MegaSuper
05/08/2015 at 20:56

Pacific North West. If you want to see one of the most vibrant stance scenes in the country; come to Seattle. old-school BMW's, Subaru wagons, and older Japanese cars can be seen laying frame up here. It truly is a great place for car culture; and there's events everywhere all the time.

look up triple X root beer car show, or C&C Portland or the shows at golden gardens and Alki!

all this stuff culminates in a very vibrant scene

MasterMario - Keeper of the V8s > MegaSuper
05/09/2015 at 08:30

It’s more so that elon musk made his money in the tech industry than being more of a peer to Google. But that being said, tesla cars are more of a computer/electronic device than any car previously so it’s good to be in an area with lots of skilled software and electrical engineers.

Flat Six > Ferrero1911
05/09/2015 at 15:37

I live in Austin, Texas and we mostly have better roads out here than LA. However if you compare to just about any other metro area in the US which typically has snow, ice, salt, potholes, expensive toll roads, expensive bridges/tunnels, cobble stone streets, low speed limits, Southern California does generally have good roads. Congestion is obviously terrible, but that just means you spend more time in your car and have more incentive for a nicer car. And the canyon drives are amazing.

Flat Six > MegaSuper
05/09/2015 at 15:45

Yes, Northern California is a bit different. First, SF is not car friendly. They have great public transportation and horribly expensive parking. It is like mini-NYC. The rest of Northern California is more suburban or rural. San Jose area is full of cheapskate nerds driving hybrids. There are some pockets of local flavor in Oakland (e.g. ghostriding whips) and other places, and some amazing roads (the PCH), just not as much as LA. Almost everywhere in the US has some sort of car culture.

Everett Jiang > MegaSuper
05/15/2015 at 17:34

In LA, the car scene and culture is very strong. However, in the suburbs (especially Westlake), the car culture is hollow. Kids get their BMWs and know nothing about it except that it costs 40k or whatever. They just get the cars to brag.

oggieno1 > MegaSuper
10/05/2015 at 12:49

Greenwich, CT and NYC have the best car culture in all of the US